Bailey - Field notes, Maryland and California, 1899

Can you imagine sending birds and mammals off to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)? That is exactly what 21 year old Vernon Bailey did in 1885. The USDA had just formed a Division of Economic Ornithology and Mammology with C. Hart Merriam as its head. Not long after, Bailey was employed there and would go on to become Chief Field Naturalist some years later. These field notes document his work in Maryland in the spring of 1899, and in California later that year. Join us to help transcribe his field notes. Bailey's handwriting is not the best, and the scientific names can be a challenge but our other volunteers are always eager to help.